Vierchowod: a Como-Roma draw would be ideal, but a 4-4 would just be errors

Roma's gruelling 27-day run of eight matches across Serie A and the Champions League begins today at Como's Stadio Sinigaglia. Gian Piero Gasperini will finalise his team selection close to kickoff, managing fatigue from international duty and energy ahead of the imminent Champions League fixture against Real Madrid. The main tactical question centres on the attacking midfield role behind the strike pairing of Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen. Lorenzo Pellegrini holds a slight edge in the three-way contest with Matías Soulé and Rodrigo Mora for the trequartista position. The move would mark his first start in almost six months, his last appearance dating to 18 April against Pisa. Gasperini confirmed Pellegrini's recovery in yesterday's press conference, saying: "The break has helped him greatly, he is well now and ready to play". In defence, Evan N'Dicka is favoured to complete the back line alongside the established starters, with Leonardo Balerdi—who returned to Trigoria only two days ago following Argentina's international commitments—in reserve. Konstantinos Koulierakis remains sidelined by a knock sustained with Greece but will rejoin the squad from tomorrow. Nahuel Molina and Wesley will continue on the right and left flanks respectively. In midfield, with Bryan Cristante absent through injury, Marten De Roon will anchor the engine room alongside Manu Koné, providing substance and shape to Roma's play.

Real Madrid defeated Villareal 1-0 at the Bernabéu four days before their Champions League match against Roma at the Olimpico. Diomande scored the opening goal for Madrid. Vinicius was sent off 20 minutes after coming on as a substitute after appearing to pull Nathan Saliba's hair during an incident in which he had scored what would have been a second goal, later ruled out. The red card puts Vinicius at risk of suspension for both the Clásico and the Roma fixture. Valverde, who provided the assist for Diomande's goal, and Mbappé both played the full 90 minutes and are candidates to start in Roma's colours in the coming match.

Gasperini is navigating a packed nine-match schedule over the next 29 days with a squad stretched by absences, beginning with tomorrow's trip to Como and a midweek Champions League fixture against Real Madrid. Mile Svilar, Roma's first-choice goalkeeper, is sidelined by a lengthy injury, forcing Pierluigi Gollini into his first Serie A appearance for the club. Captain Bryan Cristante will also miss at least the next two matches, limiting Gasperini's midfield options. The coach intends to use squad rotation across both encounters without overdoing it, deploying 16 available players and rotating every department, particularly during the match itself, to keep players fresh and sharp. Changes will be concentrated on the flanks and in attack, where Gasperini plans to deploy his bench—a habitual method of his—and make best use of the wider midfielders and forwards. Ten players have been alerted for potential involvement: Molina, Lulli, Rensch, Wesley, Dybala, Malen, Soulé, Pellegrini, Castro and Mora. Gasperini will apply different structures to each department based on form and opponent; on the flanks, form and the opposing side will shape decisions, while attacking characteristics of individual players will dictate choices there. Each player effectively has a counterpart regardless of experience or age. Santiago Castro deputises for Donyell Malen at centre-forward. With Lorenzo Pellegrini's return, Matías Soulé will rotate with the former captain. The final pairing pairs high quality: Rodrigo Mora will stand in for Paulo Dybala. Defensive and midfield options are more limited, with Konstantinos Koulierakis unavailable and Cristante ruled out. At Como, Evan N'Dicka will start while Marten de Roon makes his first appearance from the beginning. Leonardo Balerdi and Niccolò Pisilli, recently back from international duty, are first changes off the bench.

Lorenzo Pellegrini holds a slight edge over Matías Soulé and Rodrigo Mora in Gasperini's selection for today's match at Como, with the attacking midfielder spot the key tactical question before the side faces Real Madrid. Gasperini is ready to rotate his offensive resources across the trequarti, where Pellegrini is favoured alongside Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen in a fluid attacking setup. At centre-back, Evan N'Dicka is the preferred option over Leonardo Balerdi, while Konstantinos Koulierakis is unavailable after suffering a contusion on international duty but will return to the squad from tomorrow onwards. On the flanks, Gasperini intends to keep faith with the pairing of Nahuel Molina and Wesley.

Roma's gruelling 27-day run of eight matches across Serie A and the Champions League begins today at Como's Stadio Sinigaglia. Gian Piero Gasperini will finalise his team selection close to kickoff, managing fatigue from international duty and energy ahead of the imminent Champions League fixture against Real Madrid. The main tactical question centres on the attacking midfield role behind the strike pairing of Paulo Dybala and Donyell Malen. Lorenzo Pellegrini holds a slight edge in the three-way contest with Matías Soulé and Rodrigo Mora for the trequartista position. The move would mark his first start in almost six months, his last appearance dating to 18 April against Pisa. Gasperini confirmed Pellegrini's recovery in yesterday's press conference, saying: "The break has helped him greatly, he is well now and ready to play". In defence, Evan N'Dicka is favoured to complete the back line alongside the established starters, with Leonardo Balerdi—who returned to Trigoria only two days ago following Argentina's international commitments—in reserve. Konstantinos Koulierakis remains sidelined by a knock sustained with Greece but will rejoin the squad from tomorrow. Nahuel Molina and Wesley will continue on the right and left flanks respectively. In midfield, with Bryan Cristante absent through injury, Marten De Roon will anchor the engine room alongside Manu Koné, providing substance and shape to Roma's play.

A former player who featured for both Roma and Como has looked ahead to their upcoming clash. He expressed regret at not having marked Malen during his time at Roma, noting that "Fabregas risks too much on the counter-attack; he needs a Deschamps." On the likely outcome, he said: "I hope for a 1–1 draw; if it ends 4–4, that's not football, that's a pile of mistakes." The double ex-player recalled inflaming Liedholm during his Roma spell, and now divides his time between cycling around Como and reflecting on his playing days.